Gibraltar fishing dispute escalates

Spain’s foreign minister said yesterday (4 August) that the country may impose a €50 fee on vehicles entering and leaving Gibraltar in retaliation for a recent unilateral decision by Gibraltar to fill the sea floor around the British territory with concrete.

The Gibraltar authorities say that creating an artificial reef in its waters will boost fish stocks. But Madrid says it is actually an attempt to block Spanish fishermen from accessing the waters around the territory. Gibraltar started filling in the concrete 10 days ago in its territorial waters, which extend only three nautical miles from the coast.

José Manuel Garcia-Margallo, Spain’s foreign minister, told Spanish media yesterday that Spain may launch tax investigations against 6,000 Gibraltar residents who have property in Spain. Madrid could also close Spanish air space to Gibraltar-bound flights, he said.

The British foreign office said it was concerned about the comments and are seeking an explanation from Spain.

Spain already began stepping up border checks at its border with Gibraltar shortly after work on the reef began, causing delays that lasted for hours. Spain denied that the checks were in retaliation for the reef dispute.

Gibralter was ceded to the UK 300 years ago. The previous Socialist government had taken a softer stance on the issue, which has been a source of significant tension between the two countries for 70 years. However the new centre-right government of Mariano Rajoy has taken a tougher stance on the issue.